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Races and Classes
Classes (This list is not exhaustive, simply touches on big tropes so people can then apply the ideas to the plethora of classes available.) Paladins/Divine There are no paladins, true priests or any other classes which draw upon divine magic. Bards (same as core): In the last Age, a skomorokh (pl. skomorokhi) was a performer, actor and jester. He or she was welcome at the courts of the petty kings or in the guilded halls of Sorya. Under the Fademen, skomorokhi were ruthlessly persecuted and killed in massive progroms. People were told that they spread lies and mischief and were carriers of plague and disease. Today, their relationship with the towns is complex. Their performances, while banned and illegal, have the potential to dispel, however briefly, the horrors of the world (it may very well be this simple fact that leads the Fademen to hunt them). The skomorokhi sometimes come together in loose alliances or troupes but just as often work alone, driven by some inner conviction that their special talents help fend off the darkness. Wildlanders (Rangers, etc.) This part of Asuria is a vast wilderness with relatively low population density. As such, many different people live off the land in some way or another, away from settlements. The term for all of these types of people is wildlander. A subset of these, known as warders or storozh, stay near settlements, guarding them and passing on information. Arcane casters Arcane casters are very rare. Being one, whether intuitive or through study, is extremely dangerous. Generally called simply Mag or Adepts, there are in fact many traditions and schools, some ancient, some recent, born in the violence of the Rive. Innate casters or sorcerors are known as koldun. Thieves and Rogues Scoundrels are aplenty in these dark times and have many roles and names. Fighters Fighters of all kinds (Warriors, professional soldiers, etc.) are known as voin and are highly sought after by all manner of folks. Druids Druids exist and, as do various shamanic classes, but they do not have access to healing spells with the exception of the Goodberry spell (but see Herbalism below). Races Gnomes The only gnomes on Asuria are forest gnomes, shy reclusive creatures with an affinity to illusion and a connection to the land. As per 5e gnomes, plus: Ability Score Increase: Your Dexterity score increases by 1. Natural Illusionist: You know the minor illusion cantrip. Intelligence is your spellcasting ability for it. Speak with Small Beasts: Through sounds and gestures, you can communicate simple ideas with Small or smaller beasts. Forest gnomes love animals and often keep squirrels, badgers, rabbits, moles, woodpeckers, and other creatures as beloved pets. The language of leaf and fur: Forest gnomes have a +2 bonus to Herbalism and Survival. Dwarves There are no dwarves left on Asuria. Already a dying race, the Fademen hunted them to extinction during the decades after the Rive. However, an off-shoot half-race remains, carrying on some traditions in mournful memory of the lost progenitor race: dwarrow. Dwarrow are an incredibly tough race, thought to be some strange hybrid of dwarves and a more brutish race that legends say once lived in the mountains. Not much more is known; the dwarrow carry on dwarven traditions (as distorted by their own cultural experience) and are, today, inhabitants of the thousands of hidden vales nestled between the peaks of the Crown. They are often encountered at lower elevations as they serve as mercenaries or come down to trade. Dwarrows stand 5' tall and are thick and hardy, with pronounced foreheads and long beards. Shape-shifting traditions are thought to be common in dwarrow, with "skin-changers" arising as part of clan traditions related to the many animals of the mountain environs. Dwarrow: Ability Score Adjustment: Your Strength score increases by 2. Speed: Base walking speed is 30 feet. Darkvision: Dwarrow are can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were in bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. They can’t discern color in darkness, only shades of gray. Dwarrow Ferocity: Advantage on death saving throws. Dwarrow Combat Training: Proficiency with all martial axe weapons. Keen Smell: Advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that use sense of smell. Animal Instincts: Can sense the aura in the immediate vicinity with a Wisdom (Insight) check. Dwarrow will gain often vague or cryptic impressions of such things; e.g.if a site had once been a place of great conflict or disaster, what the weather will be like during the next few days or if there are any impending natural disasters. Halflings There are no happy, peasant farmer pipe-smoking haflings nor thievey, smart-alecky "small folk." In the vast forests of Asuria, however, feral tribes of small-statured beings known as leshy. The leshy are tribal and very xenophobic. In the horrible decades after the Rive, the leshy survived by withdrawing further into the trackless wilds; the Fademen have never been able to subjugate them. The leshy, however, will just as soon raid other humanoid villages or steal cattle and goods, as make friends. Running into a band of leshy in the forest is a good way to die, for anyone. Leshy are the size of halflings and possess thick, spine-like hair that they wear in spikey fans or manes. Some sharpen their teeth to points and cover their bodies with a woad-like ink to celebrate their life histories; they dress in loincloths, sometimes with a shirt or vest. Their skin is thick and leather-like, in various shades of brown and tan. Leshy: Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity score increases by 2. Speed. Your base land speed is 25 feet. Size. Your size is Small. Halfling Nimbleness. You can move through the space of any creature that is of a size larger than yours. Killing Machines. You gain a +1 bonus to hit on any attacks made against a Medium or larger creature with a melee weapon. Agile. You gain advantage on any Acrobatics checks made to climb or jump. Keen Senses. You are proficient in the Perception skill. Elves The only playable elf race is the eldar or snow elves. The eldar hail from the far southern taiga and beyond. They are a hardy, magical folk who have survived in a land unlivable by most other races for millenia. Eldar have transluscent skin (so thin you can often see veins and arteries quite clearly) and white or blue hair. The eldar suffered heavily at the hands of the Fademen and are not uncommmon. An elf subrace; elf traits plus: Ability Score Increase. Your Constitution score increases by 1. Frost Resistance. You gain resistance to cold damage. Winter combat. On smooth, icy surfaces you can move at double speed and gain advantage on attacks. On new fallen snow, you gain advantage to melee attacks. Snow Elf Weapon Training. You have proficiency with the spear, javelin, and icebow (a longbow which adds 1/2 STR bonus to damage). Human ethnic groups Of the humans common near where the story starts, there are the Noriks, which are the principal stock; Arii, which originally hail from the more temperate north (where there are (or were), larger cities); and the Yrk, which are the horse-riding step people. In addition the the basic human build, here are minor advantages to each group: Noriks: Skill Versatility. You are gain proficiency in two skills of your choice. Arii: +2 to Diplomacy, free pidgin competence in all languages of Asuria Yrk: Advantage to any Ride checks. Herbalism: Due to disappearance of healing magic, there is a robust herbalist and "wood-lore" tradition across Asuria. I will explain rules when we play. The usual combination is to have both Survival (to find the right ingredients) and Herbalism (to craft poultices, oils and infusions, all of which have rules). These can heal and provide other benefits. Charms: A separate tradition, based in skills in Alchemy, is the making of charms. These are wearable items which have imbued magic, often protective, but including a variety of effects. Money: The monetary economies of the pre-Rive are gone. Today, in this part of Asuria, there is only bartering. For game purposes, 1 gp equals one week of food for one small family. All PHB gp prices hold, but are usually paid up in barter and are subject to wild regional variations. Actual coinage, usually pre-Rive, exists and has value but that value, again, varies wildly with region. It is still true that an ingot of gold is worth a fortune, but finding a place to trade it or use it as currency is just as likely to get you killed. The puppet rulers in the cities and the Fademen themselves "investigate" any "fortunes" very aggressively. Naming conventions: Norrick names are Slavic. Arii names are Byzantine. Yrk names are Mongolian. Dwarrow names are Chukchi (Siberian). Forest gnome names are just weird. Elven names are Finnish. Leshy names are ancient Polish.